


Foundlings All

by daire



Category: Highlander - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-03-08
Updated: 2001-03-08
Packaged: 2018-12-18 05:43:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11867925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daire/pseuds/daire
Summary: Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived atDaire's Fanfic Refuge. Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address onDaire's Fanfic Refuge's collection profile.





	Foundlings All

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Daire's Fanfic Refuge](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Daire%27s_Fanfic_Refuge). Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Daire's Fanfic Refuge's collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/dairesfanficrefuge/profile).

Foundlings All by Daire

_Foundlings All_

by   
Daire 

"So, there you have it. I'm Immortal." 

It was too fantastic. Elizabeth was Immortal .... never dies Immortal. With a capital "I". The woman he loved couldn't die and wouldn't age another day. Every facet she had told him about what her life entailed seemed too unbelievable. Death by beheading, no children, fights with only swords, Quickenings. Love and loss, watching the world age around you. The violence. The heartache. The sadness. The joy of seeing new things, and seeing the old age with you, perhaps to even outlive. The term "old friend" took on a new meaning. Just how old were her friends Connor MacLeod and Amanda? 

He sat there, stunned beyond words, his head reeling, the room suddenly hot. His mouth moved and worked, but no words came forth. 

Everything she'd said became a pool of words, sometimes making sense, most times not. 

The fact that he had proposed to her less than twenty-four hours ago seemed ages past. Now it was like he didn't even know the woman before him. Who sat across from him, watching with eyes full of love, uncertainty, and fear. Fear that he would leave and never come back. 

And the similarity of their childhoods, despite their being 400-some years apart, were a bit uncanny. Elizabeth was about as old as America, but had the face of a thirty year old; he was as old as the _Friends_ cast. 

They had both been found orphaned and alone, taken in by loving and openhearted families. She had told him Immortals didn't know where they came from or why. Foundlings all. He didn't know anything about his birth parents. Realization dawned on him. Could he be destined to be Immortal? He couldn't imagine it and pushed it away from his thoughts. 

What if it was all part of some fantastic world Elizabeth had created in her own mind? Or some cruel joke? He knew she owned a sword, which could just be a prop, evidence of delusion. 

"How .... how do I know this is real?" he asked. 

"You think I could make this up?" 

"You have to realize this sounds a bit incredible." It wasn't a question, but a statement saying he all but believed her. He needed proof. Both knew it. Wordlessly, Elizabeth got up and went into the bedroom and rustled in her closet for a moment. 

When she came back, she held her sword, as she walked and stood before Aidan. Unable to avoid her gaze, he looked up at her to see a different woman. Not his Elizabeth. 

Her face had changed, become hard, fierce; her eyes showing every one of her 412 years. She turned the broadsword's blade back and forth slowly, light catching and dancing on the cold metal. 

"This is what I live by, Aidan. I can see you don't quite believe me in your eyes. There's only one way to prove it to you." Balancing the blade lengthwise on her forearm, she offered the handle to him. "Take it. I want you to see what it feels like." 

Aidan shook his head. He would not play a part in her fantasy. 

In one deft movement, she had it properly in her hands, the razor sharp edge at his neck. He stared at her wide-eyed. 

"This is what I face when Challenged. Why would I make that up?" 

He was almost too scared to speak, in case the blade sank into his fragile flesh. 

"I – I don't know. Some trauma in your childhood–" 

"Trauma in my childhood? I grew up in a newborn country. Our neighbors were Native Americans. People would die of a simple cold. Pocahontas and John Rolfe aren't Disney characters." 

He stood up and to his left, away from the sword's sharpness, exclaiming, "I know that! Do you know how you sound? It's ludicrous!" 

Elizabeth threw down her sword onto the sofa and let a small dagger slip down out of her shirtsleeve and pointed it at him. "Then there's only one way to convince you." Before he knew what was happening, she had the dagger in his hand and the point poking into the flesh just below her left breast. Aidan tried to pull away, but her hold was strong. She looked straight into his eyes, gaze unwavering. 

"Beth, what are you doing? Are you crazy?" 

She shook her head in the negative, her expression softening a bit. "This is the only way." Then she pushed his hand, along with the dagger in and up into her heart. Her death was instantaneous and she did not hear Aidan cry out. Gracelessly, she fell to the floor, Aidan was too stunned to try and catch her, watching her fall lifelessly. 

When his senses came back to him, he dropped the bloody dagger and knelt by her side, placing her head in his lap, cradling. "Beth! My god, Beth .... what the hell have you done?" He tried to find a pulse, a sign of life, coming away with only blood on his hands. 

Help. He needed help. She couldn't be dead. _Call someone!_ Blood was slowly pooling on the floor, a shiny crimson circle. He looked at his hands, glistening red, realization punching him in the stomach. Elizabeth was dead because of her foolish fantasy. Had he missed signs of mental incapacity? 

No other thoughts crossed his mind. Suddenly, Elizabeth gasped for air in one deep intake of breath, her back arching. As she caught her breath, Aidan released his hold on her and scrambled as far away as the wall would let him. 

"You .... you were," he gulped, "dead." 

She breathed hard for a few moments before answering. "Yes, I was. I told you – I'm Immortal." She looked him in the eye. "Do you believe me now?" 

He started to shake his head affirmatively; he couldn't find his voice. Running his hand through his hair, Aidan stared, unable to take his eyes from her; she'd been dead five minutes ago. And now she breathed, and talked, and moved – clearly not dead. He needed to get away from the situation for a while. 

Scrambling up from his place on the floor, Aidan grabbed his jacket to head out the door. Elizabeth's voice stopped him. 

"Where are you going?" she asked quietly. 

"I need to let this sink in. By myself." He made a few more steps towards the door, then remembered a comment she had made. _We can't have children, no Immortal can._ He and his ex-wife had tried for a long time to conceive, but nothing had worked. Was it just the un-luck of the draw that he couldn't father children, or was it part of his destiny? 

Almost inaudibly, he asked her one question that could change his life. He didn't turn to face her, only turned his head to cock his ear. 

"Can you tell – sense – someone who will be Immortal?" 

The quiet was deafening, and lasted forever before she answered, simply. "Yes." She paused, unsure if she should ask the question he left unspoken. "Do you want to know if you will or not?" 

"Ah .... uh, I don't know. Not right now, I'll let you know." With that, he left to ponder the situation thrown into his life. 

* * *

He had walked the streets of New York until the wee hours of the morning, wondering, thinking, cursing. How many Immortals were there in a big city such as New York? A few, a lot? Had he crossed paths with one? Was the bit of lightning he saw on the far off sky the result of a Quickening? The questions far outweighed the answers. 

If he was to be an Immortal, could they live together without killing each other? Did she get involved with him to watch over him or did she truly love him for who he was? If not, would he want to put her through the agony of watching him grow old and die? 

Too many questions that could only be answered after he decided whether he wanted to know or not. 

Finally, he headed towards home. The home he shared with Elizabeth. 

Home. Would it truly feel like home now, after finding he lived with a virtual stranger? He knew she was the same person before he told her about Immortality, just older. A lot older. And had led a secret life. Mortal relationships crumbled because of the deceit of one partner. How could this be any different? 

He loved her, and love was supposed to conquer all. Wasn't it? 

He could make excuses and say she hadn't lied to him so much as just withheld information. Though a lie of omission was still a lie. He understood her reasons and wanted to forgive her, but could he? 

Now he stood outside his apartment building, looking up towards the twelfth floor as it started to lightly rain. It had to be about four in the morning, very few people were out and the only light on that he could see in the building was in his living room. He looked for an excuse not to go in, since he was still a bit unsure and hadn't found many answers to his questions and it was starting to rain harder. At least he'd decided to ask Elizabeth one question he knew he would get an answer to. 

With a deep breath, he walked into the lobby, waving at the night security guard at his greeting and waited for an elevator to arrive. 

When it did, he stepped in and hesitated briefly before pressing the "12" button. For once – and when he was in no particular hurry – the elevator was quick and had him looking down the hallway of his floor. He had stood so long that the elevator doors began to close. Before they had a chance to close all the way, Aidan put his hand out to stop them and stepped out into the corridor, which seemed longer than it ever had. 

He heard the elevator _ding_ behind him and the _whoosh_ as the doors closed. Taking another few deep breaths, he proceeded to his apartment, hoping Elizabeth was still there. 

The door was unbolted and he only had to use the lock key to get in. He stepped inside and quietly closed the door behind him. Looking around the room, his gaze fell onto Elizabeth curled up under a blanket on the sofa, sleeping peacefully. He did love her, what she was wasn't as important as who she was. And he loved her for who she was and accepted her faults and quirks and perfections. 

As noiselessly as he could, he laid his keys on the table and took off his jacket, then walked over to the sofa and kneeled down beside the sofa and Elizabeth's sleeping form. A lock of hair had fallen across her face and he gently brushed it back behind her ear. To this, she stirred and opened her eyes a crack momentarily, then opened up all the way when she realized Aidan had returned. 

She started to speak, but he laid a finger over her lips to quiet her. 

"I've decided on whether I want to know or not." 

~ Fini ~ 

* * *

© 2001   
Please send comments to the author! 

03/08/2001 

* * *


End file.
